Hi I'm Hilary and I love words and books. I always have done. I love language and I use it in my day job as a lecturer in communication at an FE college (I also teach numeracy and ICT). I believe that communication, in all its forms, is of vital importance to our society and writing is one aspect of that. I try to instill that in my own children (13 & 11) and in the young people I teach (16+). I like to write and comment on what I read though I have not yet written anything in particular as an author. I am currently searching for an outlet and the right route for my creativity, so I am sure that I will enjoy reviewing the work of others. I look forward to exploring this site (I can already see how easy it is to spend huge amounts of time here!) and am keen to get to know others here and to learn from you all.
Hello Hillary, Welcome to the Writing Forums. Posting your own work should not be among the very first things you do here. It is worth taking the time to see what other people have done to improve their writing, and see if some of it applies to your writing as well. That is part of why we require members to review other members' work before posting their own for review. On the other hand, there are no restrictions, other than content and copyright rules, on showcasing your work in your member blog. If you haven't explored the site yet, you should probably do so soon. Newcomers often gravitate to the Lounge, the Word Games, or the Review Room, but there is much more to be discovered if you poke in the corners. Remember to check out our FAQ as well, and be sure to read through the forum rules, too, to avoid any misunderstandings or hurt feelings. Respect for one another is our principal mandate. As for the Review Room, new joiners often wonder why we do things a bit differently on this site than on other writing sites. We emphasize reviewing as a critical writing skill. Training your eye by reviewing other people's work helps you improve your own writing even before you present it for others to see. Therefore, we ask members to review other people's writing before posting work of their own. The Review Room forums on this site, therefore, are true workshops, not just a bulletin board for displaying your work (and on that note, please only post each item for review in one Review Room forum). See this post, Why Write Reviews Before Posting My Work? for more information. And while you're looking around, don't forget to check out our Weekly Short Story Contest and Weekly Poetry Contest. They actually run more than one week apiece, but any member may enter, and all members are urged to vote for their favorites. Enjoy your stay here, and have fun!
Hey hilaryd! Welcome to the WF! I agree with you! Communication skills is the ‘key’ to success (along with other things) Nice to meet you - Jack
Hi Hilary! It sounds like you have a very interesting job. Welcome to the forum. I hope you enjoy it.
